Capacity plans for three of the four US majors face an unwelcome update from Boeing, which disclosed on 13 April that it expects deliveries of 737 Max aircraft will be delayed in the "near term". Boeing has cited a manufacturing issue at one of its suppliers as the cause of the delays. "We expect lower near-term 737 Max deliveries while… required work is completed," the manufacturer states. "We regret the impact that this issue will have on affected customers and are in contact with them concerning their delivery schedule." It adds that it will provide more information "in the days and weeks ahead as we better understand the delivery impacts". US majors American Airlines, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines are scheduled to take delivery of a combined total of 154 Max jets through the rest of 2023.

Boeing expects deliveries of 737 Max aircraft to be delayed in the near-term after a supplier notified it of a manufacturing issue. The OEM says in a statement shared that the supplier informed it that "a non-standard manufacturing process was used during the installation of two fittings in the aft fuselage section of certain 737-7, 737-8, 737-8-200 and P-8 model airplanes". This, Boeing adds, creates "the potential for a non-conformance to required specifications", and adds that the issue "will likely affect a significant number of undelivered 737 Max airplanes, both in production and in storage." It has notified the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the issue and is working to conduct inspections and replace non-conforming fittings where necessary. The FAA says: "Based on the facts and data Boeing presented, the FAA validated the company’s assessment that there is no immediate safety issue. The FAA is in close communication with Boeing and will continue to evaluate all new affected airplanes prior to delivery." Boeing adds the in-service 737 Max fleet can continue operating. The manufacturer did not name the supplier in its statement; however Spirit AeroSystems confirms that it is the supplier involved. "Spirit has notified our customer, Boeing, that we have identified a quality issue on the aft fuselage section of certain models of the 737 fuselage that Spirit builds. This is not an immediate safety of flight issue," it states. "We have processes in place to address these of types of production issues upon identification, which we are following. Spirit is working to develop an inspection and repair for the affected fuselages. We continue to coordinate closely with our customer to resolve this matter and minimise impacts while maintaining our focus on safety." Boeing says: "We expect lower near-term 737 Max deliveries while this required work is completed. We regret the impact that this issue will have on affected customers and are in contact with them concerning their delivery schedule. "The company adds that it will provide more information "in the days and weeks ahead as we better understand the delivery impacts". It is the second time this year that Boeing has had to halt deliveries over issues with parts supplied by Spirit AeroSystems. In February it paused the delivery of 787s for around three weeks due to an "analysis error" relating to the forward pressure bulkhead.

Lufthansa has transferred its first reactivated Airbus A380 to Munich ahead of its planned return to service in June.
The German carrier says the aircraft (D-AIMK) was flown to Munich from Lufthansa's primary base in Frankfurt on 12 April. Daily flights from Munich to Boston with the type are scheduled to begin on 1 June, and to New York JFK on 4 July. Lufthansa previously said it would reactivate four of its remaining eight A380s by year-end and that they would be based in the Bavarian city. Prior the pandemic, the airline operated 14 A380s from Munich and Frankfurt. The airline mothballed its A380 fleet amid the pandemic in 2020 and, until the recovery last year, expressed doubt about a service-return of the type. In 2019, Lufthansa disclosed an agreement with Airbus under which six A380s would be prematurely returned to the airframer by 2023 in exchange for more A350s. Data shows Lufthansa has removed two A380s (D-AIMK and D-AIMM) from storage at Teruel airport in Spain. Ten A380s in the carrier's fleet are listed as being in storage in Teruel and two at Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrenees airport in France. D-AIMK and D-AIMM are among the four youngest A380s in Lufthansa's fleet, which were built in 2014 and 2015. The airline took delivery of its first A380 in 2010. Lufthansa's A380s are configured with eight first, 78 business, 52 premium economy and 371 standard economy seats. The fleet is powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines.